Transformation Incomplete
by quicksilversquared
Summary: Sometimes the superheroes cut it uncomfortably close when they have to get away to detransform. Sometimes it's not their fault. What if Puppeteer had activated Adrien's Miraculous before he had a chance to transform? What would happen if Chat Noir had been able to use his Cataclysm before Reflecta hit him? A retelling of both stories.


Adrien jittered anxiously from foot to foot as Plagg gnawed on his cheese. He could only hope that Ladybug had figured out where the Puppeteer was hiding out and where Lady Wifi was heading, because then they actually had a chance of stopping the akuma from puppetizing him.

The knowledge that someone could take control of him through no fault of his own at any moment...well, it was pretty nervewracking. He had made sure to keep to unpopulated side streets as he let Plagg eat, just in case he was forced to transform. Hopefully he _wouldn't_ be- he had been taken control of by the akumas a few too many times for his liking lately- but it was better to be safe than sorry when it came to protecting his identity.

He didn't blame Ladybug for not being able to get his doll. She had to make sure that her doll wouldn't be taken because otherwise they'd all be in trouble, but he just wished that he didn't have to be compromised as well. Maybe if he had been a little faster about destroying the Wi-Fi tower he could have gotten back in time to catch Lady Wifi before she could get away. If he hadn't expected that Ladybug would be able to capture and cleanse Lady Wifi's akuma as soon as he compromised her weapon, he would have hurried back a little faster. Maybe he should have asked Marinette to call home and get her parents to hide the dolls. There was a lot that he could have done that would have prevented the situation he was in right now.

Hindsight really _was_ 20/20.

"Hurry, Plagg," Adrien urged, ducking into an alley as he headed in the direction he had seen Ladybug go. "Eat faster!"

Plagg grumbled through a mouthful of cheese. "I'm savoring it."

"Savor it faster."

"Just because you don't appreciate a good cheese doesn't mean I can't," Plagg retorted, taking a large bite.

"It's a disgusting-smelling cheese," Adrien shot right back, peering around a corner and ducking back into the alley as someone walked by. He could be moving _so_ much faster right now if Plagg would just _hurry up_.

Plagg gulped loudly, clearly not as concerned as Adrien himself was. "That just makes it taste better!"

Before Adrien could reply, a tingle started in his feet. He froze as a light appeared around his ankles, just like it had appeared on Alya not even an hour before.

"No no no no no-" Adrien gasped as the light spread up his legs and chest, even as he tried to stumble away from it. There was a light tugging on his finger, and then everything went dark.

* * *

When Ladybug spotted Chat Noir racing in front of her to the Kidz+ building, she knew without a doubt that the Puppeteer had already gotten to him, since he definitely hadn't had time to recharge and transform already. Besides, he hadn't even called her to ask where she was heading, and the way he was moving... she couldn't put her finger on it, but it wasn't quite right. It was too stiff, and he wasn't using his baton as efficiently as he could to move through the streets and over buildings.

She could only hope that he hadn't been out in public and been forced to transform in front of a lot of people. Lucky Charm fixed a lot of things, but exposed secret identities was unfortunately not one of them. If they were super lucky, no one saw Chat Noir exposed. If they were moderately lucky, the people who saw his forced transformation didn't take pictures or videos and had enough sense to keep their mouths shut about what they saw.

Of course, the general populace often didn't show a whole lot of common sense when it came to Ladybug and Chat Noir.

Ladybug bit her lip, wondering if she should take the time to check the news to see if Chat's identity had really been exposed. Since he had already been puppetized, there was no real rush, right? The Puppeteer wouldn't have wasted any time taking Robocop and the Evillustrator under her powers either, so they were doubtless on their way.

But there were people in the building, people that Ladybug had to get out of the way, and it wasn't like she would be able to do anything if the news did break.

With a sigh, Ladybug resumed her charge forward. She'd have time to worry later.

* * *

Ladybug didn't remember about Chat Noir's lack of real transformation until the moment after she tossed her Lucky Charm into the air to cleanse the damage the Puppeteer had caused.

And then she panicked as it hit her all at once.

Alya was going to detransform, and of course the reporter (who had seen the dolls as Marinette was working on them and who was very familiar with who the akumatized civilians for each were) would figure out that Nathaniel and Sabrina's dad were supposed to be there and that the third figure was Chat Noir's human identity, and then the whole city would find out before Ladybug and Chat Noir could dissuade her, and-

Ladybug bolted. Right as the swarm of ladybugs reached Lady Wifi and Chat Noir, Ladybug pounced and tacked Chat Noir straight across the room in a red and black blur, just as his leather suit gave way to normal civilian clothes. The boy in Ladybug's arms gave a very confused yelp as she hauled them quickly up to the scaffolding at the top of the room. She could only hope that she had gone fast enough to escape Alya's eagle eyes.

"L-Ladybug? What's going on? Where are we?" Another yelp as they landed, well out of sight of the people below. "I'm not transformed!"

"I'm not going to look," Ladybug assured her partner, keeping her eyes closed until her face was safely turned away from the civilian Chat Noir. All of the people below were more than a little confused and she should be down there explaining things and making sure she got Manon safely back to her mother, but if she left Chat Noir now it would be difficult to get back up without accidentally seeing him.

"Do you have your kwami?" Ladybug asked, back to Chat Noir. Judging from the way he clutched her elbow, he wasn't entirely comfortable standing on the support beam in his civilian form. She didn't blame him- they were pretty high up, the beam wasn't the widest, and if he fell, the floor was hard and unforgiving. She'd never let him fall. "If you can transform for real, that would be great."

"I don't know if I can. I think so-" There was the sound of frantic patting of clothes, followed by a slightly panicked "Plagg? PLAGG! Where is he? And- oh my god, my ring! My Miraculous! It's missing!" Chat Noir wavered a bit on the beam before he grabbed hold of Ladybug again to steady himself. She had to stop herself from turning around to get a better grip on him. "I- I don't understand. I had it on earlier, and I don't remember taking it off."

Ladybug winced. That was... not good. Best case scenario, Chat Noir had somehow unconsciously taken his ring off to protect it before he was completely transformed and they would find it where her partner had been forced to transform. Worst case... well, hopefully worst case hadn't happened. "We'll find it, _chaton_. Don't worry. Where were you when the Puppeteer took you? You weren't in public, were you?"

Ladybug couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief when Chat Noir shook his head against her back. "No. I was hidden in an alley, about to transform, but my kwami was eating his cheese too slowly."

"If you tell me exactly where you were, I can go look after I've recharged my kwami-" Ladybug began, hoping that Chat Noir's kwami or at the very least his Miraculous was still there. Finding his kwami would doubtless be easier, since she was only familiar with what his Miraculous looked like when he was transformed.

An ear-splitting squeal cut off the rest of what Ladybug was about to say as a small black and silver blur shot into the room and immediately made a beeline to where they stood, still precariously perched on top of the beam.

"Plagg! I was worried!" Chat exclaimed gleefully, his bare hand reaching out to take the silver ring his kwami held out. Ladybug resolutely tore her gaze away from her partner's hand and his kwami and stared in the opposite direction. She was not going to peek, especially since they'd managed not to accidentally discover each other's identities so far. Knowing what his Miraculous looked like when he _wasn't_ transformed would only give her an accidental clue to his real identity. "How did you find me?"

"I followed you for as far as I could, then guessed. It wasn't that hard." The kwami, now that his Chosen was found and the Miraculous was back in place, sounded smug.

"You did a great job! That must have been hard-"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm a genius. Where's my cheese?"

"-you're the _best_ , Plagg. I'll go buy the best Camembert I can find for a special treat tonight-"

"Can you transform?" Ladybug asked before Chat Noir could get too carried away. Down below them, people were really starting to sound confused. "I think we should explain to the people down there what happened."

"On it. Plagg, transform me!"

It wasn't until the green light died down behind her that Ladybug relaxed and turned around. Chat Noir grinned at her a little sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. "Sorry about that. I really was hoping I could get transformed faster so I wouldn't end up like that."

Ladybug couldn't help but smile. "It's fine. I'm just glad that your identity is still safe." She stepped away, poised to leap down to the floor below. She paused, glancing over her shoulder at her partner. "But let's not tempt fate like that again, okay?"

* * *

It wouldn't take long for Reflecta to wriggle loose from the basketball hoop he had wedged around his arms, Chat Noir knew that. He had to be fast as he cleared the way out of the building, and then he would have to be even faster to get away so he could hide, recharge, and get straight back in the fight. Even once he got away he wouldn't be safe- Reflecta was hitting anyone and everyone without distinction, so it wasn't as though he would be ignored if she ran across him as Adrien.

Thankfully, Reflecta's powers weren't at all dangerous, and once people were turned into her lookalikes she didn't have any power over them- but if he or Ladybug got his, they wouldn't be able to use their powers. It would be a huge inconvenience for him, but if Ladybug got hit?

That would be a _disaster_. He couldn't let that happen, and the only way for him to protect Ladybug was to be there himself. He definitely had to let people escape from the school, though, so he would just have to run once he cleared the door.

Without wasting any time, Chat Noir summoned his Cataclysm and placed his hand down on the pile of lockers.

The metal crumbled, the rust and decay spreading from one to the next until the whole pile was a pile of dust. Chat Noir let himself grin- that would _never_ stop being cool- and started forward, kicking dust out of the way. He had only taken a couple steps forward when he was suddenly engulfed by a fizzy pink light. He yelped, flinching away. The air cleared a moment later and Chat Noir stumbled, falling to the ground when he was suddenly unbalanced by the unnaturally high platform heels that had appeared on his feet.

 _No. No. Nonononononononono-_

"Ha _ha_ , Chat Noir!" Reflecta crowed, bounding easily over on her heels. "It's better this way, anyway. I _hate_ cats!

His _ring_. His Miraculous was _gone_.

This was not good.

After a moment, Chat Noir forced himself to fight back the panic. Reflecta hadn't taken control over him and from what he could tell, mind control wasn't one of her powers. He could still help, even in these _ridiculous_ heels. Chat Noir pushed himself to his feet, taking one step, then another. He wobbled- this was _insane-_ and tried again.

Seriously, how did women do this on a daily basis? He much preferred his sneakers.

A flash of red came from across the atrium- _Ladybug_ \- and Chat Noir redoubled his efforts to walk properly. He was _not_ going to be beaten by footwear, no matter how ridiculous. Finally he found his stride, managed not to faceplant on the way down the steps, and went to go recruit some help in the form of other people who Reflecta had hit.

Of course, if Reflecta _did_ end up having some sort of mind-controlling power, his efforts would be more of a hindrance than a help. Still, if Reflecta hadn't taken control of them already...

He would have to risk it.

They attacked and Reflecta escaped, running away and setting Chat Noir's mind at ease for once and for all that she didn't have any control whatsoever over the people she transformed. She didn't hit any of them further- _aha, no further powers!_ \- before she left, which was also good news.

Really, Hawkmoth was losing his touch. If he were a madman supervillain, he would definitely make sure that his supervillain could actually have vaguely useful powers. On top of that, he would make sure he didn't give people powers that actually _protected_ the very items he wanted to get. It hadn't slipped his notice that Reflecta had stopped demanding his Miraculous right after he got turned and that she hadn't turned Ladybug right away when she had the chance.

He was pretty certain that Hawkmoth probably wasn't even remotely happy with Reflecta at the moment. That was good news for them.

As he and Ladybug escaped, Chat Noir took a moment to glance back at the door. His Cataclysm had been completely wasted, it seemed- after all, there was no point in escaping the school when the supervillain had already left. He wasn't certain what would happen when his timer ran down since his Miraculous was currently sort of MIA, but it didn't matter right now. There was nothing he could do about it and he had a battle to fight.

Chat Noir and Ladybug charged across the city, headed towards the Kidz+ building. As they went, Chat Noir almost forgot about his predicament. Ladybug had shaken off her momentary hesitation about his participation now that he was missing his staff and his claws, and while he had to rely on Ladybug for transportation across the city, they were chatting like normal as they charged up to the studio and put together their plan for luring Reflecta in and ambushing her.

As they finished filming Ladybug's plan, Chat Noir could feel an odd tingle of magic running down his spine. He shivered, distracted for a moment- perhaps Reflecta's transformations wore off after a bit?- before he realized that no, it was his Chat Noir transformation unravelling under Reflecta's spell. There was no way to tell the difference, which was good- the last thing they needed during a live broadcast to the entire city was him accidentally revealing his identity- but he had to wonder what had happened to Plagg while he was trapped in this weird in-between state.

An angry buzz at his shoulder answered that question. While he couldn't see Plagg or feel the kwami's body, Plagg was clearly Not Happy. Adrien mentally promised Plagg a whole wheel of cheese as soon as they got out of this and promptly tuned the buzzing out.

And then Reflecta appeared, and he had more things to worry about than an irritated kwami. He had to keep Ladybug from getting hit as well, since she was the one with the power to turn them back, and then he had to help her carry out her plan of blinding Reflecta so that Ladybug could steal the corrupted jewel. It wasn't until Ladybug had her Lucky Charm camera in hand, ready to toss it into the air, that Plagg's vibrating kicked up a notch and reminded him that underneath the Reflecta garb, he was not transformed.

" _WAIT!"_ Adrien practically screamed, grabbing Ladybug's wrist before she could toss the camera. He retracted his hand just as fast at the startled, wide-eyed look she gave him. "I used Cataclysm before I was hit! I'm not transformed right now!"

" _Oh_ ," Ladybug breathed immediately, lowering the camera. "Okay, that's, uh, bad- are you sure you've detransformed?"

"I can feel my kwami right here," Adrien said, pointing to his shoulder. Plagg's buzzing increased again. "Uh, I really should gooooooo-"

Ladybug yanked him straight off of his feet in her haste to get them out of the recording studio. She burst out of the doors, sending them crashing against the wall, and tore down the hallway. It was all Adrien could do to stay upright, especially with the _ridiculous_ platform heels.

As Ladybug headed down another hallway, Adrien's mind inexplicably flashed to the end of their very first battle. Ladybug had released the akuma and most everything had returned to its pre-akuma state. Maybe it wouldn't happen the same since she had purified the akuma, but if everything reverted now, in the middle of the TV studio with employees everywhere...

 _Bad_ wouldn't even start to cover it.

"Quick, in the closet," Ladybug gasped, and next thing Adrien knew he was being shoved into a small janitor's closet. The door slammed shut behind him as mops and brooms came down on his head. He hit the back wall almost immediately as he stumbled.

"Miraculous Ladybug!" Ladybug called from right outside the door, and Adrien gave a sigh of relief as the costume fell away from him, leaving him in his normal everyday clothes. Plagg let out a loud "Finally!" and dove for Adrien's inner pocket, where the cheese was stored. From outside the door, Ladybug giggled.

"The coast is clear," Ladybug reported after a moment. "You might want to transform to leave because of all of the reporters in the building, though."

"I'm _not_ transforming you again right away," Plagg claimed immediately, raising his voice so that Ladybug could hear him. Adrien just rolled his eyes.

"It'll only be until I get outside."

"You say that now, but what about when you get outside and want to go for another ten minutes, hmm?"

"I need to get going," Ladybug said anxiously as her own Miraculous beeped. "Good job today. See you around, Chat Noir."

"Yeah, of course," Adrien replied a bit distractedly. Before he could shove his foot in his mouth by saying something stupid like _there's plenty of room in the closet, I can share_ (there wasn't any room), Ladybug's footsteps faded away.

Plagg floated up in front of Adrien's face, arms crossed. "I hope you know that being stuck under that _outfit_ was uncomfortable _."_

"I know."

"And annoying."

"Yes, I know."

"And I didn't like it."

"Well, neither did I. Those heels were a _nightmare_ to run around in and that was _way_ too close of a call for me. I was worried that I was going to detransform right in front of Ladybug." Adrien peeked out through a crack in the door. "Are you good to transform? We should get back before someone notices that I'm gone."

"Oh, _now_ you want me to keep you transformed all the way over to the school. See, what did I say-"

Adrien rolled his eyes and lowered his voice as a worker walked by. "It's two minutes tops once I get out of the building."

" _Ugh_."

"And it would be, like, fifteen minutes to get there while untransformed. I'd be late for class."

Plagg gave the most obnoxious yawn _ever_. "You're always late to class. What's the difference?"

 _That_ , Adrien felt, was slightly unfair. He wasn't _always_ late to class. Just sometimes, and he always had a reason. If he weren't returning as fast as he could from an akuma attack, it was a midday photoshoot that had commanded his attention. "I can't be late all the time or it'll start to look suspicious. Come on, Plagg-"

"I don't wanna!"

" _Transform me!"_

* * *

 _A/N: As with most of my stories, this story is complete. Please review, they make my day! :)_


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